Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Two issues: General vs. Charter City, and dead deer


Pacifica Tribune, letters to the editor, 1/22/13.  "What's wrong with this picture?"  by Therese M. Dyer 

"Editor:  At last week's Pacifica City Council meeting, I spoke up during oral communications and on Agenda items 8 and 9 which were on the recruitment of a new City  Manager and the $34,000 to be spent on another study regarding the Police Department. We already had the Police Chief speak and his opinion was that it was not economically feasible, and then another $20,000 was spent after that.

What's wrong with this picture? For one thing, under the Public Records Act I requested all the job descriptions for the department heads and you can too, but it specifically says that the Police Chief is next in line in the absence of the City Manager and in a General City, which we are, we must maintain a Police Chief. In a Charter City you don't even have to have a City Council and you can more or less hire a City Manager or Mayor and if he doesn't do the job fire him. No recalls needed. The people hold the reins. And I want to thank Mike O'Neill and Len Stone for agreeing. So I was shocked that the three councilwomen voted for it. Especially Mary Ann Nihart, who was the one for all those sales taxes that never got on the ballot.   Remember how financially strapped we were six months ago and cut services back for six months? What a joke. I wouldn't believe anything these councilwomen say, If they are too lazy to do their homework at least have the decency to listen to people who have.

Your property, what's that?
Regarding the first page story about a senior citizen complaining about a dead deer on her property, one can tell that it is not clear to the public as whom to call. The police did the right thing, but if I were part of Public Works, I'd put my face down in shame. Whether the deer was dumped or it simply died there, why didn't someone drag it on public property where it came from and call the Humane Society (which is not even listed in our local directory). Now we are paying $250,000 for dead animals to be removed from public property. How much more would it cost to include private property? And how many dead animals did they pick up in 2012? Now my suggestion is why not spend that money on the Humane Society rather than on all the consultants we paid for over the years because we have no leadership. This a misuse of taxpayers' money."

Posted by Kathy Meeh

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

don't leave us hanging. what happened to the deer carcass?

Anonymous said...

really, drag that thing onto public property and then call the PHS? are we suggesting someone break the law? a city employee or a the PD? not to be too snide but that landowner can well afford to have a private party haul that stuff away. and that landowner has the right to raise hell with the city and the PPD for signage, enforcement and prosecution of the pigs that dump stuff. what's the fine? raise it.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, no kidding. Why all the sniveling over a dead deer? Get over it!

Kathy Meeh said...

"Yeah... sniveling over a dead deer?" Anonymous 7:02 AM.

This issue is who removes and pays for dead wildlife that dies of natural causes or is dumped on your private property. Got it now?

How the deer died is a preliminary consideration. As Therese said, the deer came from public property, not private property. And given the private property location adjacent to Sharp Park Road, the deer was probably hit by a car (killed) on Sharp Park Road (public property). Then to avoid traffic hazard, the deer may have been dragged to the private property.

Is it fair that the property owner should pay for the removal of what someone else dumps on their property? Also note the location is remote enough that someone had also dumped tires on the same property. We all pay taxes here. Like stupid, unfair city laws, rules, requirements? Well, this is one.

Anonymous said...

I really don't care, and you are wasting your precious energy, when birds of prey have already taken care of the problem. Get over it!

Any other dumping, like tires, should be reported. But you can get rid of the tire yourself. It is important for the city to know that illegal dumping is going on and that's it. It is not their problem to come get it.

Plenty of times mystery dumpers have dumped their garbage on my property. What do I do? I pick it up and dispose of it in the most environmentally safe manner.

We have become a nation of whiners, crybabies, and people who don't know how to take care of themselves or even a tire. Deal with it and get over it. This should be the least of your worries.

Kathy Meeh said...

People who move into cities, have an expectation of basic services. Its no secret that we live in a city that has inadequate revenue to fund services. This is one of them.

I suspect your extended "rugged individualism" rant stops when you are personally affected in a way you can't or won't "deal with". So to your "deal with it" comments, I say its better to find solutions to what appears to be, in this instance, a city inadequacy.

Anonymous said...

what? a new poster child for Pacifica's failure as a city? find another. this one's a stretch. which is not to say cc shouldn't be all over the cops to do a better job up there.

Anonymous said...

Yes. Democrats hate people that know how to "take care of things" themselves. Shame on me. I forgot.

This "rugged individualism" will try and remember that.

Anonymous said...

oh wow, that's a problem. my 74 year old neighbor lady grabbed the big old dead raccoon in our front yard by the tail and dropped it in the hefty bag I held open. triple-bagged that sucker and put him in the trash. hate to think what a self-reliant type would do with a deer carcass. carefully tended funeral pyre?

Anonymous said...

What's wrong with this picture? For one thing, under the Public Records Act I requested all the job descriptions for the department heads and you can too, but it specifically says that the Police Chief is next in line in the absence of the City Manager and in a General City, which we are, we must maintain a Police Chief

Ritzma, will be the next city manager. Like it or not.

Anonymous said...

Yes, by all means let's shut down the Resource Center and our libraries so we can pay a quarter of a million dollars a year to satisfy a couple of whining ladies. Great decision-making and excellent priorities.

Anonymous said...

Hmmm sounds like a problem with priorities. Confusing wants with needs. Failure to create revenue sources. Counting on the gov't and the taxpayers to foot the bills for our bucolic little burg because that's all we know. A city that's unsustainable. And now a dead deer on private property. Waaawaaaa, somebody take care of my problem because I just can't. Sounds like Pacifica!

Anonymous said...

@347 You think it's going to be Ritzma? Well Rhodes is out because he didn't cover council's ass well enough and he wasn't the warm fuzzy type with employees. Ritzma? Despised by employees. Universally. Failed to support Rhodes well, what a shock. Don't count her out. Deals are made every day and she knows how. If not her, then probably some career-end crusty hired gun willing to take the hits for council, tell the lies, keep the various groups in line. Someone with serious economic development experience? Not a chance.